Nadiya Hussain’s Ginger Rice with Spiced Chickpeas
A spiced winter warmer to banish a cold, Nadiya Hussain's Ginger Rice with Chickpeas, from her series, Nadiya's Family Favourites, is comfort food heaven.
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Nadiya’s Family Favourites
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Introduction
This ginger rice is like the Jewish penicillin of our home. When the little ones are poorly, I like to put on a big batch of it. The rice is cooked slowly in water steeped in ginger and then finished with lots of butter. It can make you feel better when you are unwell and keep you warm when it’s cold outside, and it’s one of those things my body often craves, usually in the middle of the night. Sleep is for wimps anyway! When I can’t sleep I pop a pot of this on the stove. If I’m having it as a proper meal I like to serve it with spiced chickpeas, piled up right in the centre of the bowl.
Ingredients
| For the ginger rice: | |
| 100g | basmati rice |
| 750ml | cold water |
| a pinch of salt | |
| 40g | piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated |
| 200g | unsalted butter, cubed |
| For the spicy chickpeas: | |
| 3 tbsp | olive oil |
| 1 | small onion, chopped |
| ½ tsp | salt |
| 1 tsp | tomato purée |
| 1 | tomato, chopped |
| ½ tsp | chilli powder |
| ½ tsp | ground turmeric |
| ½ tsp | ground cumin |
| ½ tsp | curry powder |
| 2 x 400g | tins of chickpeas, drained |
| ½ | a lemon |
| a large handful of fresh coriander |
Method
Put a medium non-stick saucepan on a medium heat and add the rice, water, salt and grated ginger. Allow the mixture to come to the boil, being careful because if you leave it, it can boil over. (If you must walk away, turn the heat down.)
Once the rice has boiled for about 10–12 minutes, check to see if it’s ready. You can tell by pressing a grain. If it’s ready, it should fall apart.
Once the rice is cooked, it’s time for the most important bit. Stir the rice continuously with a whisk to encourage it to break up and form a wet porridge-like consistency. Keep mixing until the mixture really begins to thicken. This can take 20–30 minutes, so you’ll need to be patient.
Once the rice has thickened, lower the heat and add the butter. Whisk the butter in until it has melted. Take off the heat, pop a lid on the pan to keep the rice warm, and get on to the spicy chickpeas.
Put a large non-stick frying pan on a medium to high heat and add the oil. Once the oil is hot, add the onion, salt, tomato pur.e and chopped tomato, stir, then cook for about 3 minutes, until the onion has just softened.
Now add the chilli, turmeric, cumin and curry powder. If the mixture begins to stick, add a splash of water. Keep cooking on a medium to low heat for 5 minutes, to cook the spices.
Add the chickpeas and stir so they are covered in the spices. Lower the heat, add the juice of the lemon, then finely slice the rind and add to the chickpeas. Stir, then pop a lid on the pan and leave to cook for about 10 minutes on a really low heat.
Remove the lid, take the pan off the heat, and stir in the coriander.
Serve the ginger rice in bowls – it’s best when it’s piping hot, so just warm it through in the pan if necessary. Spoon a load of those spicy chickpeas right in the centre.
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